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(American Journal of Botany. 2009;96:933-949.) doi: 10.3732/ajb.0800347 © 2009 Botanical Society of America, Inc.

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Pentapetalum trifasciculandricus gen. et sp. nov., a thealean fossil flower from the Raritan Formation, New Jersey, USA (Turonian, Late Cretaceous)¹

L. H. Bailey Hortorium, Department of Plant Biology, 412 Mann Library Building, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 14853-4303 USA.

ABSTRACT

The study of fossil flowers in the last 25 years has greatly increased our understanding of angiosperm diversification. Following that tradition, we here describe a new fossil taxon from the Late Cretaceous of New Jersey, Pentapetalum trifasciculandricus Martínez-Millán, Crepet et Nixon gen. et sp. nov. It includes actinomorphic pentamerous flowers with quincuncial calyx, imbricate corolla, numerous stamens of markedly different heights, and a superior tricarpellate ovary, which are morphologically consistent with the flowers of the Theaceae s.l. and of members of the order Theales sensu Cronquist. Cladistic analyses including 45 extant taxa plus the fossil, 61 morphological characters, and different combinations of the molecular markers rbcL, matK, trnL-trnF, matR, and ITS support its inclusion in the order Ericales sensu APG. Comparison with extant taxa using traditional methods of identification suggests a relation with the Theaceae s.s. (Stewartia), but the phylogenetic analyses do not support this view. Instead, the phylogenetic analysis suggests some relation to the Ternstroemiaceae/Pentaphylacaceae (Theaceae s.l.), exemplifying the importance of evaluating identifications in a phylogenetic context. The description of Pentapetalum further adds to the ample diversity of Ericales in the Late Cretaceous.

Key Words: Ericales • fossil flower • Late Cretaceous • Pentaphylacaceae • Raritan Formation • Theaceae • Theales • Ternstoemiaceae • Turonian

Received for publication 14 October 2008. Accepted for publication 2 February 2009.

FOOTNOTES

¹ The authors thank J. Svitko for assistance with SEM, S. McNaull of Cornell Plantations for help locating plants in the living collection, and H. Ochoterena Booth for kindly sharing the matrix of morphological characters for the Theaceae. They also thank A. Gandolfo, L. Calvillo Canadell, and J. Salazar for fruitful discussion on the morphological characters and A. Gandolfo, M. Luckow, and two anonymous reviewers for comments on the manuscript. This research was supported by NSF grant DEB 0108369 to W.L.C. and K.C.N.

² Author for correspondence (e-mail: mm383{at}cornell.edu)

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